Dawning Ascent (The Pearson Prophecy Book 1)

by Jen L. Grey

  After a while, Logan looks over at me. “I don’t remember much from last night, other than a few alarming details I need you to explain. Let’s just start in order. What happened to cause you to get so upset at training yesterday?”

  Everything clicks into place. Logan mentioned he had got distracted during his training, which was at the same time as mine. It must have been because of the whole Elizabeth debacle, which means his injuries are my fault. I am going to have to figure out how to keep my emotions in check, or figure out a way where he can’t get a read on them all the time.

  “Well, some things happened that I wasn’t expecting. It resulted in Mrs. Holcomb wanting to meet me outside of class to continue my training,” I answer.

  “Yeah, Ari, good try. I may be in pain, but my mind is fine. What happened, and I want all the details,” he demands.” Clear annoyance is on his face.

  Of course, luck wouldn’t be on my side. “Well, Mrs. Holcomb told our class that we needed to learn to tap into the elements. I got distracted and opened myself up to my power, and it started coursing through me. I didn’t know what to do, and I couldn’t expel it in front of everyone. It kept building until I couldn’t stand it any longer, which made me fall to my knees. Elizabeth saw me fall and had to make a big deal about how I’m worthless.” I cringe at the memory.

  Knowing him, I better get the whole story out before he starts asking questions. “Mrs. Holcomb stepped in and told Elizabeth to leave, and that we can’t treat classmates like that. Then she dismissed the whole class because she knew Elizabeth would run to her father. However, she asked me to stay. Long story short, she knows I’m different and wants to continue my training at dark, at the old Pearson home.”

  I close my eyes, waiting for Logan’s response to everything. I don’t know what I would do without him.

  “I didn’t realize how bad it was getting.”

  He worries so much; I haven’t wanted him to know. But at this point, things are escalating and it’s time to come clean.

  He closes his eyes and then opens them, staring out at our path. “How can we trust Mrs. Holcomb? At this point, I don’t know if we can do anything else but move forward. I hate being a guard, but the more I think of it, it puts me in front to protect you. I’m glad in that regard, so I can be the person to fight for you. I don’t trust anyone else to do it.”

  “I think I’m going to have to trust her, Logan. I need someone to help me.” I take a deep breath. “There are times my power hits me so hard, it’s all I can do to breathe.”

  We ride in silence for a few moments. I turn and grab some food and hand it over to Logan.

  He winces as he takes it from me gingerly and cocks his head. “Why in Knova was Nick in our room last night? Did Mother see all this? Also, how did you get the palace healer to come help me? That was risky, Ari.”

  Yikes. How do I get myself out of this one? “Well… Nick came to our quarters to check on you. When he saw how bad a shape you were in, he left and retrieved the healer.”

  I look away, not wanting to meet his gaze. “Oh, and Nick saw Mother trying to gain access to father yesterday, heard her mumblings, and knew what it was about. He intercepted her and talked her into a long vacation on the other side of Agrolon to calm down and put things into perspective.” Ugh, I’m going to hell for leaving out portions of the truth to my brother.

  I don’t want Logan to know about my and Nick’s confusing relationship right now. I can’t understand it myself, let alone try to justify it to him.

  Logan nods his head. He doesn’t ask any more questions.

  I welcome the silence.

  We come upon the village’s entrance, and his wounds are bleeding again. This is not good. The blood is blossoming across his red shirt. I’m hoping everyone we pass will think it is just sweat. It’s already a hot, humid morning.

  After what feels like hours, we arrive at the village healer’s building. It’s a small gray house that could use a little tending. The paint is peeling away from the wood, and one of the windows is sagging.

  How am I going to get Logan off the horse? I can’t use my power to help him dismount since people are around us. What the hell am I going to do? He can’t get down in his condition.

  A girl I’m in acquaintance with comes up. “Hey, Ariah, long time no see. Is everything all right? Why are you here at John’s place?”

  “Hey, Claire. My brother is a little under the weather, and I could use some help getting him off the horse. Do you mind?” I point to him.

  “He’s your brother?” Claire glances in my brother’s direction and grins. “I can take him off your hands.”

  I laugh. To be honest, I’ve always envied her because she is gorgeous. Her family is poor, but by her bright smile, you wouldn’t know the difference. She has long blonde hair and sky blue eyes. She has little to no power, but she is one of the most carefree and friendliest people.

  I pull her over to the saddle with me. Logan is in so much pain now that he hasn’t even paid attention to our exchange. Claire takes a quick inhale of breath. “Yes, let’s get him to John right now.”

  As we attempt to lower him, Logan topples over on me. It feels like a ton of bricks just landed on me, and I struggle to keep my balance.

  Claire moves to his other side, grabbing him and pulling some of his weight off me before I fall over, and somehow, we manage to get him straight on his feet.

  We each pull one of Logan’s arms over our shoulders to help support his weight, and we walk toward the door. We make it inside, and my nose is engulfed with the smells of the herbs stored for patients.

  The healer, John, is sitting at his rickety desk that looks like it might just fall over, and he raises his head and glances at us as we shuffle through the door. As soon as his eyes land on Logan, he stands. “Oh, dear. Please, go ahead and bring him to the back room. What in Knova has happened to him?”

  We follow John back to the room. Ugh, what can I tell him? It can’t be the truth or the king will be angry. “Logan is a guard, and there was an intense training session yesterday. He messed up and one of the guards attacked him as a lesson.”

  John’s eyes narrow at me. “Please, go back in the waiting room. I will take good care of him. It will be a while, so don’t be concerned if you don’t hear right back from me, but he will be fine. It looks like you’ve taken good care of him and got him to me in just enough time.”

  Like hell I was leaving his side.

  Claire touches my shoulder. “Hey, you’ve got some blood on you. Let’s go find you a shirt for you to change into at my house.”

  I look down and notice my green shirt has dark red splotches all over it. I don’t want to leave him, but I can’t walk around like this. Why didn’t I think to pack an extra shirt? I don’t want to borrow anything of Claire’s, either, but I also don’t have much of a choice.

  Chapter Five

  It’s hard for me to leave the healer’s place, but Claire coaxes me into going. We reach Claire’s home, and I notice how large but old their house is. Their house is made of wood and is two stories high. What’s even more surprising is that, when I walk inside, I feel at home. Her house smells of vanilla, and there is one large family portrait hanging on the wall. Our quarters’ walls are empty, and we have no family photos anywhere. However, there are a ton of pictures of Emerson around the palace.

  I follow Claire up the stairs and into her room. She walks over to her closet and sorts through the small mounds of clothes piled on the floor. I watch her as she attempts to find a shirt she is willing to part with. “I’m so sorry about this. I promise to return the shirt within the next couple of days.”

  “Don’t be silly. I have plenty to choose from, even if it doesn’t look that way.” She grabs one of the few shirts on the ground and tosses it at me. “And seeing your brother was payment enough. He’s so good-looking.”

  When I’m around her, I wind up laughing because I enjoy her perky attitude. This time, I don’t want to
hear it. That’s my brother she’s talking about. “Eww, that’s my brother.”

  She laughs and motions to the shirt in my hand. “Aren’t you going to put it on?”

  Is she expecting me to change here? I can’t change here. I used to have deep scars that ran down my back, and I never wanted people to see them. Even though Logan swears they disappeared when I turned eighteen, the memories still haunt me. I walk toward her door to go to her bathroom.

  Claire’s forehead creases. “You know what? I’ll leave you to change in here. Just come join me in the kitchen when you are finished. I know you are ready to get back to your brother.”

  Once she exits her room, I change shirts, afraid that she might walk back in. Once I’m safely clothed, I throw my bloody shirt in the small garbage can beside her bed.

  As I go to leave her room, her light pink walls catch my eye. She has a worn white trunk that sits at the end of a lumpy bed, about the same size as my childhood one. She has some lavender flowers sitting on the trunk, making her room smell amazing. Her room feels well-loved and homey. My room is very nice, but very prim and proper. Only the best can be had at the palace.

  I leave her room, wallowing in self-pity, and walk into the kitchen.

  Claire is in the kitchen, gathering a few apples and slices of bread, and placing them in a container. She glances up and smiles when I walk in. “Figured we’d need some sustenance while we wait.”

  “You don’t have to wait with me. I’m sure you have things to do. I appreciate you letting me borrow the shirt.”

  “Shush. It’s not a big deal. My family owns a farm here, and I was going to the store this morning to pick some feed up for the animals. They can wait for a few more hours, and my family will understand. You, my dear, are in need of a friend, and I just happen to be available at the moment.” She turns around and walks out the door, leaving me to follow.

  I jog after her, at a loss for words. I don’t want to be alone. I’ve met Claire many times before, and would say she is a friendly acquaintance. I didn’t expect her to be so kind. I could use some company.

  We arrive back at the healer’s place and sit down in the waiting area, eating the food Claire packed us. A few minutes later, an elderly lady comes out and explains that John is finishing up, and it will not be much longer.

  Thank goodness. I take a deep breath and tears fill my eyes. I’ve been worried about him, considering how much blood he’d lost.

  Claire grabs a deck of cards for us to play. She manages to beat me three times in a row. She’s brimming with excitement. “You’ve made my day. Growing up with two older siblings, I never got the opportunity to win! We need to do this more often.”

  I shake my head, placing my right hand over my heart. “Nope, I’ve lost too much of my dignity already. Not going to happen!”

  She giggles.

  The lady comes back out. “He’s ready for you to come visit him.”

  I jump up, rushing to the door.

  As I walk in the room, Logan is lying on the table with his shirt off, and his eyes are closed. I am so glad Claire stayed behind to pick up the cards, because the last thing I want to hear is commentary on my brother’s chest. Shaking off that disturbing thought, I walk over to stand next to him. He has several stitches that run down the sides of his face, and his arms are covered with bandages.

  John enters the room and puts a hand on my shoulder. “Miss Ariah, please make sure he remains out of training for at least a week. Give his wounds time to heal. I have my assistant writing a letter to state as such. He needs longer than a week, but he’s insistent that he needs to get back to training.”

  Of course, he is. Headstrong and stubborn are two of my brother’s main characteristics. Also, it’s because he doesn’t want the king paying any extra attention to our family.

  John walks to the other side of Logan, checking him over again. “You may want to bring him back in the next couple of days, so I can take another look at his stitches before removing them. Also, my assistant is gathering his antibiotic ointments to use for the next week to help prevent infection. I’ll give him some herbs for pain before you go. Do you have any questions?”

  I shake my head. “No, I think we are good. We will see you in a few days.” I wait as John leaves to gather the medicine and wind up pacing the room.

  When he returns to the room, he gives the medicines to me and wakes Logan.

  Logan sits up and almost falls over.

  I catch him and help him put his shirt back on. When he stands, I put my arm around him to help keep him steady as we leave the healer’s office.

  We get to the horses and find Claire waiting on us. She watches us approach and points at my brother. “I figured you’d need a hand with that one.”

  Yes, I will. I hadn’t even thought about trying to get him on the horse.

  Logan walks away from me and over to his horse. He moves slow, and when he gets to the horse, he leans against it.

  Claire and I help lift him up so he doesn’t have to use his arms.

  Logan is sagging, his face white. Despite that, he complains. “I could have done it myself. I’m not an invalid.”

  I laugh. My dear, sweet brother hates receiving help, even when he’s injured.

  I turn to Claire and kick at the ground. “Thanks for everything. I appreciate it.”

  Claire grins and pulls me in for a big hug. I flinch but she just deepens the hug. After a minute, I relax and hug her back. “That’s what friends are for, and now, we are just that.” She pulls back and winks, then turns and walks away.

  We take a longer time returning to the palace, which shows the amount of pain Logan is now in. We need to time our arrival to be when most people are busy, that way our chances of going unnoticed are better.

  When the palace comes into view, I can’t help but notice how big and solid it looks. It’s a beautiful castle fit for a grand ruler, but I can feel a sense of darkness to it. It’s like the beauty of the white walls is trying to overshadow the dark, but if you look close enough, the dark is all throughout.

  Thankfully, our arrival coincides perfectly with the dinner rush. However, a guard does notice us and makes his way over to us. “Hey, what’s going on…”

  His face pales when he reaches us. “Logan, I am so sorry about yesterday. I can’t believe the king let things get that out of control.”

  Logan groans, unable to form actual words.

  I lift my hands up. “Look, I know you’re supposed to alert the king, but we are just getting back from the healer. Logan needs to go to bed. Is there any way you can help us?”

  The guard stays quiet and bites his lip. He then looks me in the eye. “Fine, just because the king let things go too far the other day, but if this gets out, I will tell them you are lying. Do you understand?” He points at Logan. “I don’t want to wind up like him.”

  I sigh and nod. “I promise. Thank you so much.”

  Before he changes his mind, we rush past him and are able to shuffle into our quarters unnoticed.

  Despite Logan’s complaining, I help him get settled and head back to the stables to get the horses put up. As much as I don’t want to, a trip to the dining hall is in store for me tonight. I am too exhausted to cook.

  On my way to the dining hall, I bump into another one of the guards, Dave. He is tall, with shaggy brown hair and hazel eyes. I try to go around him, but when he sees me, he calls out, “Hey, how is your brother? We aren’t friends and all, but the king took his lesson too far.”

  That seems to be the consensus. I take a deep breath. “I took him to the village healer this morning, and he got stitched up. Can’t go back to training for at least a week. I have a note that I will take down to the guard training grounds in the morning.”

  “Don’t you worry about it. Do you have it on you? I’ll give it to the captain myself.”

  At this point, I’m too tired to argue and honestly relieved at the offer. I still have it in my pocket, so I hand the note ove
r to him.

  “Thanks,” I call over my shoulder. I need to get back to Logan, and I can also hear the shower calling my name.

  I continue my way down the hallway to the dining hall and find Nick standing there, watching me. What in the world is he doing?

  I make my way to the doors, determined not to acknowledge him. I don’t want the king to happen to see.

  As I pass by, Nick grabs my hand and pulls me behind one of the large, white, stone columns to hide us.

  What in Knova is he doing? If his father or sister saw, there would be trouble.

  He pulls me into him, his tone low. “How are you doing? Is Logan okay? I was worried about you all day. I should have come with you.” He buries his face against my neck.

  I relax as I lean into him. How can I be angry at him? “I'm okay, just exhausted. It's been a long twenty-four hours. Logan will be fine and is all stitched up. Thank you for sending that large breakfast over this morning. That was more than enough for you to do. Anything else would have caused too much attention.”

  He runs his fingers through my hair. “I am aware of that, and I don't want unkind attention on you. Well, more than my father already bestows upon you.”

  “Well, at least I don't have to deliver the note to Logan’s captain. Dave volunteered to do that for me, so that will help a little.” I take a deep breath as he surrounds me in every way.

  We stand there, holding on to each other, hiding from everyone.

  When his spicy scent makes me dizzy, I take a deep breath and enjoy it one last time before I make myself pull away. I am exhausted, and both Logan and I need to eat.

  He groans as I put some space between us and yanks me back against him. “Don't tell me we need to leave. I am just now getting some time alone with you.”

  I giggle and take another moment to savor being in his arms. I want to stay here with him for as long as possible, but people must be growing weary in the dining hall. I pull away with a snort. “I don’t want to leave either, but people are waiting on you in the dining hall, and I must get some food to Logan.”